gions not founded on revelation, have formed two distinct principles. Mr. Holmes examines the influence of these, in different periods of the world, and enquires in what time either principle predominated. In the state of innocence it was love, and expectation of benefits: in the Jewish difpenfation, it was confiderably mixed with fear; but even then, the foundation was laid for another, more perfect dispensation, when mankind were to be reconciled to God through the merits of a Saviour.

The fecond Tract was occafioned by the republication of Mr. Balguy's Effay on Redemption: it is entitled, the Premial and Judicial Principles of Redemption, confidered under the idea of divine Rectitude.' In pursuance of the former principle, he points out the attributes of fhowing mercy, and inflicting punishment; but feems of opinion, that the operation of both is neceffary; and, that though penitents may hope for pardon, finners will undoubtedly be punished. Impunity for impenitent finners is not then to be confidered as the object of our Saviour's fuffering: it is not for them that he died: it is not they, who are redeemed. From the death of Chrift Mr. Holmes thinks that the fuffering of fome may be penal for the faults of others; and that, as we fee only a few links of the vaft chain, we ought not to confider this mode of proceeding as any imputation on the wifdom and benevolence of a God, who fees all the connections of paft, prefent, and future.

The third effay, on the Angelical Meffage to the Virgin Mary, is defigned to prove that the meffage was of divine origin, and the meffenger fent from God; and that, from the concurrence of all the parts of the evidence, our Saviour was a divine being in a human form ;-that he was God and man,

Thus was God gloriously and fenfibly manifested unto men; when he came down to men, in the likeness of man, and in our nature difcovered his own. And when he appeared in human nature, he difcovered himself by divine works, and his glory was difclofed by his actions. If any one looked upon the man Chrift Jefus, there was no fenfible glory about his head, that might diftinguish him from others; but there was an intellectual luftre, with which wisdom and goodness adorned him. His words and deeds were fuch, as mere man never did exhibit; and upon his speeches and actions there were marks of divinity visible. His miracles were fuch as no power, but that of God, could do; and with them he entertain. ed and astonished the minds of men, who expreffed their admiration, saying, what manner of man is this.' Befides, these miracles were all acts of love; and men were affected at them,

as

as at the obfervation of greatnefs and goodnefs. At the fame time, the obliged and amazed multitude were entertained by the divine reafon with difcourfes full of wifdom and virtue, fuch as were moft worthy of God, and most profitable to men. Those who heard him speak fuch wisdom as never man spake, faw him live fuch virtue as never man lived; and celeftial holinefs cloathed the Son of man with glory. He was thus a living law of virtue, and the substantial doctrine of wisdom, and a fenfible manifeftation of power; and yet a man, like unto us in all things, except thofe glories, and except our vicious infirmities. Here then was human nature in view, and human conversation obfervable: but in all this, a divine wisdom, goodness, and power, did appear. Here was the life of God exhibited in the nature of men; and the invisible divinity did appear, veiled in the fenfibleness of humanity. His converfation was familiar, and yet ftupendous; and every appearance was wonderful, but not terrible. Such a manifeftation of God there was, as obliged men to the greatest veneration of him; and what the Son of God did, was moft God-like.

Such an

one is he, who is the fupreme in the fpiritual kingdom of God; and none other was either worthy or fit to be fupreme, but he, who by his appearance could fhew us the Father, and reconcile us unto him.'

The fourth effay is on the Refurrection of Chrift, and of the Body. The former is first demonftrated by ftrong and clearly connected evidence; and the latter is inferred from it. The different objections are answered with confiderable force.

A very fenfible and judicious Difcourfe on Humility follows, in which this state of the human mind is recommended as the fureft guard against the fascinations of profperity, and the best fupport against the frowns of adverfity; as a convenient quality, as well as a religious principle.

The notes contain much learning, and fome curious information: thofe on the first tract are extremely curious, particularly in the references to authors who speak of human facrifices. In the notes on the fourth tract, Mr. Holmes gives it as his opinion, that the future life will be a state of society. On the whole, our author feems very well acquainted with the fubjects he treats on; and, though we have occafionally differed, for on fome points a difference is unavoidable, yet we can freely and cheerfully commend the whole. To have ftated those paffages on which we entertained another opinion, would have led us too far; it might have drawn us on to speculations, in which truth would be with difficulty afcertained, and have at laft ended in barren difputation.

The

The Twin-Brothers; or, a new Book of Difcipline for Infidels and old Offenders. In Profe and Verfe. 8vo. 25. Elliot.

-we

1T T is not eafy to guess at the contents of this book from the title; and after it is read, fo whimfical and excentric is the author, that the difficulty is fcarcely leffened. Thefe Twin-Brothers are, a poem and a fermon;fermon; we beg pardonit is a new exhibition,—a sermon in a style fuch as our fathers never knew. The poem is a new colony proposed and confidered.' It is a whimsical Hudibraftic one, in which the author propofes to colonize fome defert spot,-not with felons and convicts, but with a race that may well be spared, the Deifls. Where they are to go, we know not; but we would beg leave to take from the colony thofe Deifts who neither write nor difpute, because belief is frequently involuntary; and it has been faid, that in this tribe there are at least fome whose lives are in the right. Our projector too muft take care whom he calls Deifts, becaufe fome indifcriminating authors have rafhly called the modern Unitarians by this name. poet, however, chiefly talks about David Hume, Voltaire, and Rouffeau. His rhymes are not always correct, or can his humour be fometimes eafily understood; yet, on the whole, it is a very amusing performance.

The

The Sermon is an addrefs to the old Bucks who, by example at least, if not by precept, train up a child in the way he -Thould not go. There is much farcaftic invective against this race, and a vein of irony that is occafionally very fuccessful. The humour evaporates in the too great length of this new exhibition. The following argument, though ludicrously enforced, is ftrong and cogent; it relates to thofe who affume any religion for temporal advantage.

I wish for no feigned friendships: I hold the temporifing, accommodable fyftem to be infamous and deteftable. I muft therefore be exceedingly forry if it is frequent and fashionable. Let us gravely and foberly talk of this matter. What, pray, conftitutes a gentleman? He is no coward, he is no liar, he is no deceiver: on his word, on his writing, on his profeffion, on the plain language of his conduct, you may confidently rely. Ah! what becomes of our accommodation? If I have described a gentleman, my temporizer forfeits the character; for he is not a man of courage, of integrity, of confiftency, of honour.'

The following ftory, though there is a little indecorum in the ludicrous conclufion, is well told.

Apropos, on the fubject of bibles; you have heard the

story

ftory of our friend Harry I have laughed a hundred times, when I have figured how confounded he must have looked on the production of his Bible: I must tell you this ftory, gentlemen. It was this. He was going abroad. Mothers are mighty good people, you know; and Harry's mother took up Harry to her closet, and said many a grave thing to him you may be fure: but to crown all, he took from the fhelf an elegant Bible, telling him, this was the precious treafure; he must remember his duty; he must remember her; he must confult and take great care of the precious volumes. Little did Harry know how precious the volumes were; foryou fhall hear-Harry returns in due time. One day the worthy lady takes our friend aside, and hoped he had remembered the last injunction fhe had given him." He could very honestly say, He had taken great care of the Bible. To prove this respect and obedience, he runs up ftairs to his own room, and returns inftantly with the two volumes fafe and found, neat and fair. The good lady pulls off one cover: "Rather too clean, Harry?" "O mother, I took great care of them." The fecond volume is equally unfullied: fhe hakes her head; thereby indicating her fufpicions that they had not been perused so often as the had wifhed. She opens volume first, and, lo! a five pounds bill is found fafe and found. The fecond volume difplays bill the fecond, quite fafe alfo, and of four times the value. She was confounded,

and fo was Harry! Harry, I used to fay to him, I know one man of our acquaintance who moft fincerely regrets he did not fearch the Scriptures!"

Indeed, it may be obferved, that the author's humour occafionally carries him too far. He comes too near the porch, and occafionally steps on the threshold of the temple: above all, his invectives cannot increase the deteftation of the hoary finner, nor are they likely to produce a reformation.

Elements of the Grammar of the English Language. Written in a familiar Style: accompanied with Notes Critical and Etymological. By Charles Coote, A. M. 8vo. 6s. in Boards. Dilly. THE

HE profeffed defign of thefe Elements is to furnish fuch a fyllem of grammar as, by uniting perfpicuity of expreffion with precifenefs and juftnefs of idea, fhall avoid the moft effential defects obfervable in the various treatifes hitherto published on the fubject. The general utility of a work of this nature is fufficiently obvious. How far Mr. Coote has fucceeded in his laudable attempt, may appear from our enfuing enquiry.

The

The volume is divided into four books, respectively allotted to orthography, etymology, fyntax, and profody. The author begins with remarks on the different powers or founds of the vowels, and the pronunciation of the confonants; concluding the first book with remarks on the English orthography. The following observation on the last of these subjects deferves to be extracted.

The orthography of a great number of words is fo unfettled, that they are written indifferently two ways. Thus, enlarge and inlarge, inquire and enquire, increafe and encreafe, entire and intire, fuperintendence and fuperintendance, vitious and vicious, negotiate and negociate, and many other words are used indifcriminately for each other. This difference is the effect of their paffing to us from the Latin through the medium of the French; in confequence of which double derivation, they are differently written, according to the temporary prevalence of one or the other language in the writer's mind. The rule I would recommend in these cafes is, to write in the Latin mode thofe words which we have received, almost unchanged, from the French; but where the French have made confiderable alterations in the word in queftion, it feems moft adviseable to adapt its orthography to that which prevails in their tongue.'

It is known that the cafe of the English nouns, which anfwers to the Latin genitive, and is styled by bishop Lowth the poffeffive cafe, is formed by adding to the noun the letters, preceded by an apostrophe. When the plural ends in s, the other s is omitted, but the apostrophe is retained. Dr. Wallis and Mr. Greenwood, however, recommend the elifion of the plurals; as the lord's house, for the house of lords; the warrior's arms, for the arms of the warriors. On this occafion, Mr. Coote makes the following just remark:

But this is certainly an improper method, as it confounds the poffeffive cafe of the fingular number with that of the plural; the lord's house, as written by Dr. Wallis, implying the house of lords or of a lord, rather than the houfe of lords, to which lente the doctor applies it. If either s is omitted for the prevention of a harshness of found, propriety and perfpicuity require the omiffion of that which fucceeds the apostrophe; as, the lords' houfe, the warriors' arms; a method fufficiently diftinguishing the plural from the fingular, which, in the words now treated of, would be lord's and warrior's.

Mr. Addifon has obferved, that the letters, on many occafions, does the office of a whole word, and reprefents the his or her of our forefathers.' In confequence of this opinion, he fometimes fubjoins the pronoun bis to a noun, to denote the poffeffive cafe; as my paper is the Ulyffes his bow,' for Ulyffes's bow. Our author juftly remarks, that this is an erroneous idea; becaufe, if thes were a contraction of his, it Vol. LXV. March, 1788.

P

could